Fresh Broadcasters at Dean College

John Rooke Talk Show Broadcast with student. Photo Courtesy: Dean.edu

A popular degree path here at Dean College is the Sports Broadcasting Degree. This path is different in comparison to other colleges and universities because of how quickly students can get hands on and be put onto a broadcast.

This degree path has some of the biggest broadcasters in New England as its professors with the head of the Program John Rooke and Jerry Trupiano. Professor Rooke has an array of connections in the sports broadcasting industry and is currently the voice of Gillette Stadium and the play-by-play commentator for Providence College Men’s Basketball. Professor Trupiano is an award-winning broadcaster and the former voice of the Boston Red Sox.

These Faculty are not the only ones behind this growing program. It is led by student broadcasting directors Josh Barbara, Dan Botolino, Dawson DiBarri, Grant Flood, Sam Smith, and Jason Wilson.

The two freshmen highlighted in this article are Ben Smith and Dan Vetstein. When asked about how these directors are assisting them through their first semester, Daniel said, “Jason Wilson has been an incredible help to me over the last semester.” He also continued by saying, “I have also learned a lot from Josh Barbara and Sam Smith. Sam taught me the ropes on how to get on air comfortably. And Josh has taught me many ways how to prep for games better than in the past. He's taught me about interviewing and connections also.”

A main point of the program here at Dean is the ease that the broadcasters can get on air either with or without prior experience. When asked about the expectations that were presented to him, Ben says, “I think my experience in this program has been great. I came to Dean specifically to call games and get involved as much as I can. Prior to Dean, I called games for Dartmouth Community Media for 4 years which has prepared me for the collegiate level.”

Dan also added on by saying, “The overall experience has been really amazing so far in the program. I'd say it exceeded my expectations on what I expected to happen and the amount of games I'd be on the call for. I love how inclusive the program is and how you need to get out there and do many games very early.”

Ben and Dan both mentioned being on many games and their first semester is not even over yet.

When asked about how the freshmen mesh with the existing broadcasters, student director Sam Smith says, “As a student director of the program, I have seen first hand that the freshmen have definitely adapted well, they’re learning how to do this at the collegiate level.” He finished his statement by saying, “The freshmen are off to a great start so far.”

The program works hand in hand with DeanTV here at Dean College to deliver the best broadcasts possible for every Dean College home game.